THE inevitable has happened.

Singapore is in a recession.

We should be worried, but should not despair and resign ourselves to our fates, or the days ahead will be worse.

We should consider ourselves fortunate to be living in Singapore, as it is very well-run.

We have huge foreign reserves which will help the country ride the storm better than other countries.

There have been no runs on our banks, thanks to the prudent policies of the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Businesses here have a competitive edge as Singapore represents trust, reliability and quality.

All these were not created overnight or by chance.

Instead, they have been painstakingly built up over more than two decades.

I would like to tell all fellow Singaporeans that we can survive this recession, just as we did the last two, where we emerged even stronger.

We have what it takes - don't lose hope, or we will lose our confidence to turn things around.

Mr Jolly Wee Huat Choon

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